New research on how young girls endorse stereotypes about intelligence

Mindset Scholar Andrei Cimpian and his collaborator, Sarah-Jane Leslie, recently contributed an article to the New York Times discussing findings from their new study, just published in Science magazine, that explores how young children endorse stereotypes about intelligence.

The researchers found that six-year-old girls are less likely than boys their age to believe that members of their gender are “really, really smart.” Girls also tend to avoid activities that they are told are meant for very smart children. The findings suggest that ideas about intelligence are manifested in young children and can have real consequences for the types of activities they engage in.